Overview

• The Land Court has launched an eight-week hearing on Whitehaven Coal’s Winchester South proposal for an open-cut mine in the Bowen Basin that would yield 17 million tonnes of coal annually.
• Dozens of protesters rallied outside the Brisbane court, with conservationists likening the project to past reef-dredging plans and warning of a “climate catastrophe.”
• Activists said the mine could emit more greenhouse gases in a single year than Australia’s entire annual output.
• Company lawyers highlighted broad community and Barada Barna traditional owner support and projected $696 million in state royalties alongside 500 new jobs.
• Whitehaven’s barrister argued that 11 million tonnes of metallurgical coal yearly are vital for steel production underpinning renewable energy infrastructure.